


The friendliest of fires

by lettherebedragons



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Banter, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, F/M, Family Shenanigans, Fluff, Happy, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Mild Blood, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Snowball Fight, but all drenched in safety and love, it's a little bit of everything really
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-16
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-18 06:08:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29484981
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lettherebedragons/pseuds/lettherebedragons
Summary: Vex's snowball hits Percy a little harder than intended.Or: Nine-hundred words of Vex and Percy being goofy and in love, with a smattering of emotions for good measure.
Relationships: Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III/Vex'ahlia
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	The friendliest of fires

Vex aimed, threw and watched with satisfaction as her snowball sailed in a perfect curve towards Percy's face. It hit him square in the temple. She was about to start cheering, but the comically shocked expression she had hoped for did not appear. Instead, Percy let out a pained 'gah!'. He doubled over, clutching at his face.

Immediately, instinct took over. Vex was sprinting towards him before she had formed a single thought. The snow made it difficult to move, however, and when she skidded to a halt in front of Percy, he had already straightened up. He was still covering his right eye with his hand, though.

'Oh Percival, dear, I am so sorry!' A thin line of blood trickled from beneath his fingers, and her stomach clenched in guilt and concern. 'I'm _so_ sorry, darling, let me see it.'

She carefully put her hand on his and peeled his fingers away. Percy turned his face a little, eyes squeezed shut. It seemed she had inadvertently scooped up some ice or a pebble together with the snow; something solid had hit Percy's temple with considerable force and left behind a slowly bleeding cut, just beside his eye. _A lucky shot_ , she thought, feeling slightly queasy.

Ever so gently, Vex pressed her fingers to Percy's cheeck, trying to gage the depth of the cut. He hissed, flinched away and muttered: 'Good god, Vex'ahlia'. But when she wiped off the blood with her sleeve, barely any new drops welled up. The cut, upon closer inspection, really did seem more of a scratch than a gash. Her unease settled somewhat, she took a deep breath. Leave it to Percy to insist he was fine when he was run through with arrows, but to suffer pointedly at the slightest of injuries.

She pulled back enough to catch his gaze. 'I think you will live.'

'Well, you're awfully lucky, then,' Percy answered, right eye still closed but appraising her critically with the left. His tone was sober, but they had done this enough that Vex could just feel the smugness underneath.

'Why would _I_ be lucky?'

'Well, I don't know what would have happened to you if you had killed me this way. Imagine the guilt.'

She tried to keep her expression solemn, but she could feel a grin tugging at her lips. 'I am sure I would have managed. There'd be a few months of mourning, of course, but then I would have realized that you – ' she pretended to sniffle, '– wouldn't want your beautiful wife to spend her life miserable. If you had still been here, you'd tell me to move on and be happy.'

'Would I, though?' Percy cocked his head. 'You know I am not quite the forgiving type.'

At that, Vex laughed out loud, though as she reached up and put her hand on Percy's face again, casting Cure Wounds, she couldn't help but softly swipe her thumb over the delicate skin beneath his eye. She watched as the cut closed itself, leaving nothing but a smear of dried blood.

Percy kept very still under her ministrations. It was only when she dropped her hand down to her side, that he caught her fingers and squeezed them. 'You shouldn't have wasted a spell on that,' he said quietly, all playfulness suddenly gone from his voice.

His expression, sad and loving and weary all in equal measures, kindled a flame in her insides she wasn't sure would ever die down. It was the fire that had started the moment they found him in that prison cel, even though back then she had not been aware of it yet, and that had only grown with each hardship they'd faced, flaring up brightest during their meetings with the Briarwoods. It was the burning anger she felt towards everyone who'd had a hand in aging this man beyond his years.

'Darling,' she said softly, 'look around. We are home. There is nothing here to harm us. We are- _you_ are allowed to let your guard down every once in a while.' She squeezed his hands back. 'And even if we weren't, it was not a waste. It's never a waste when it comes to you.'

Quietly, she leaned forward, pressing her forehead against his, and he let her. They stood like that for a moment, breathing in each other's smell. Then, before the dark memories could truly ruin the afternoon, she grinned and moved to whisper in his ear: 'Besides, it wouldn't do for a heroic scar to make you even more handsome. I would not be able to keep my hands off of you.'

Her lips ghosted over the shell of his ear and Percy immediately flushed bright red. Even after all this time together, he still blushed as easily as in those first weeks. Vex rather hoped that would never change.

Then she quickly kissed his cheek, turned on her heels and darted away from him. Over her shoulder she called: 'At least we now know who really has the superior aim!'

'All we know is who is prepared to fight dirty!' Percy called back.

A snowball hit her shoulder, and she ran for the treeline laughing, her arms up to protect her head.


End file.
